At Least For Tonight
by MorganHarding
Summary: When Maggie gives bad news about Malcolm to Ezra, he is devastated and shuts everyone out. But will Aria be able to get through to him even if they are no longer together? Ezria One Shot


**So this one shot is not supposed to be Ezria's make-up scene in the finale or whenever it will be. What I think is going to happen in the show is that they will slowly begin to connect again in a loving way when they need each other the most. So, without further ado, this is what I think will happen if/when Aria and Ezra find out that Malcolm isn't Ezra's before the season finale. **

Ezra stared blankly at the wall across from him. Scotch in hand, he sat on his couch with his tie loosened around his neck. As he took another drink from his glass, there was a knock at his door. Without question, he mindlessly opened the door.

It was her.

"Hi," Aria said nervously after staring at Ezra.

He looked back at her, almost annoyed that she was at his door. But deep down her knew he needed her.

"Can I come in?"

Ezra stepped aside to let her in and walked back over to the couch. She shut the door behind her and instinctively set her purse down on the stool in the kitchen. When she asked him what had happened, he shook his head and downed the rest of his drink. At that moment, she had never felt more distant from the person she loved.

"Ezra," she said in a louder tone, desperate to get through to him. "Don't shut me out."

He looked up at Aria who was standing off to the side, keeping her distance. He thought about what went down in the staircase at school the previous week and raised his eyebrows at her comment.

"Look who's talking," he said coldly.

Aria sighed and sat down next to him on the couch, knowing that she could get through to him. She was the only person who knew in full detail how Malcolm affected his life. And besides, she wanted to be the girl to break the wall he seemed to build.

She grabbed his hand and pulled it closer to her lap. When he didn't pull away, she decided to try again.

"Ezra," she said in a softer, concerned tone. "Please tell me what happened."

Ezra was tired of putting up a front so he tried to put what he was feeling into words. He leaned forward, placing his elbows onto his knees and holding his hands in front of him. He squint his eyes like he was concentrating on what he was going to say. Finally he sighed and looked at Aria sitting next to him.

"It's just so frustrating, Aria! Here, my life was finally falling into place: I finally didn't have to worry about sneaking around, I was doing alright working the editing job, and most importantly, we were happy! I could take you out to restaurants or to my mother's gallery and hold your hand while doing it!"

He paused, and then shrugged his shoulders.

"Then I learn that what I thought was 'taken care of' was not in fact taken care of."

He started getting angry. Not at Aria, but at the confusing situation. "Aria, I changed my life because of him! I literally put my life on hold to make room for Malcolm, and now Maggie tells me that there has been a mistake? Mistake!? I learned to love this boy like he was my son, and now he's taken away from me? Not only that, but I had to give up the most important thing in my life in order to support him, and now it seems as if it's impossible to get that back."

After he said this he looked at Aria. She gives him a sympathetic look, knowing it was about her and how much it hurt when they broke up. Ezra begins shifting his emotions from anger to sorrow. He looks at her with sadness in his eyes, almost like he was going to cry. He starts to speak softly, his voice beginning to break.

"Why can't I do anything right, Aria?"

Desperate to comfort him, Aria placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned in closer to him. "Ezra, don't you see? You did _everything _right. Most people wouldn't have given Maggie and Malcolm the time of day. And I know our relationship was complicated, but you did everything you could."

Hearing that, Ezra squeezed his eyes shut for a minute and turned his head forward again so he wasn't looking at Aria.

"And I know this probably isn't going to help," she lifted the hand that was on his shoulder and began to brush the hair on the side of his head the way she used to. "But sometimes life isn't fair. It's definitely not fair to you. Because in my eyes, you deserve _everything_. You're a wonderful, loving…"

Tears began to form in her eyes. Ezra heard her voice breaking and now looked directly at her. "Charming, _perfect_ guy, and you deserve to be happy. I wish, even for a day, that I could make everything better. Because sometimes everyone needs a break, you know?"

He gave her a small smile and she kissed him on the cheek. "And Ezra, just remember that nothing is ever impossible."

Ezra threw his arm around her and pulled her into his chest. She willingly leaned in, and they sat there in silence for what seemed like hours holding each other. Aria felt herself dosing off and when Ezra noticed, he began to sit up. He slid out from underneath her and went back near his bed. Aria sat up, a little disoriented from sleeping, and heard dresser draws opening and shutting.

"Ezra?" she called, rubbing her eyes. "What are you doing?"

Ezra walked back over, stopping in front of her. He had changed out of his shirt and tie and now wore a grey t-shirt and black boxers.

"Here," he said, tossing her what he was holding in his hands.

"What is it?" she said kind of to herself as she unfolded the soft bunch that landed in her lap. She realized it was one of his white t-shirts and a pair of shorts he usually wears to the gym.

"I thought these would be more comfortable than what you are in."

Aria looked down at the now wrinkled dress she still had on from school. Thinking about school, she looked at the clock. It was past midnight on a school night.

"There's no way I'm letting you drive home," Ezra said, almost reading her thoughts.

She hesitated to change, not sure if it was a good idea. Of course she wanted to stay over. But he was still her teacher, and the consequences scared her more than ever.

"Ezra, I don't know…"

Ezra sat down next to her on the couch and cupped her face. "Can't we just pretend things were the way they used to be, at least for tonight?"

Aria could feel her heart melt. She placed her hand on top of the one of her face and leaned in to kiss him. She pulled away quickly and rested her forehead against his.

"I'm sorry; if I kissed you any longer I wouldn't be able to stop."

Ezra lightly laughed at her honesty. "Me too Aria, me too."

She pulled away and changed into the clothes her brought her. Throwing her hair up into a messy bun, Aria waited for Ezra to lie down and then cuddled up against him on the couch. And for the first time in months, everything was perfect. Because for the few hours that they had before the sun rise, Aria and Ezra could be the couple they used to be. And _nobody_ was going to take that away from them. Not tonight.

**So what did you think? Get what I mean by not an official get back together scene? I just thought of it the other night and wanted to write it down. Please tell me what you think!**

**P.S. My other story, I Belong With You, You Belong With Me, will be updated a little later down the road. I still have to write the next chapter so hang tight! **

**Twitter: MorganHardingx **


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